Pupillage
Welcome to our guidance for those applying, or thinking of applying, to us. You have made a good decision!
Applications for pupillages commencing in September 2025 will open in January 2024 through the Pupillage Portal. Further information on the timetable and next steps can be found on the Pupillage Gateway website. To assist in any future applications, please consult our Guidance on Pupillage Assessment Process and Selection Criteria.
Keating Chambers is a leading commercial set. It is one of the two top construction chambers in the UK and worldwide. We won The Lawyer’s Chambers of the Year in 2020. We have won Chambers & Partners Construction Set of the Year most years for the past 14 years (including in 2020) and we are consistently top-ranked by the directories both as a set and for individual members in construction, energy, international arbitration, professional negligence, procurement and planning.
Chambers’ area of practice is dynamic and challenging. Most of our cases are contractual disputes, but principles of tort, restitution, mistake and misrepresentation frequently arise. The cases are intellectually challenging and the complexity of the disputes requires thorough analytical skills. Cases involving members of Keating Chambers are regularly featured in The Lawyer’s “Top 20 Cases of the Year”, including in 2020, 2021 and 2022. We emphasise that no specialist or technical knowledge of construction or engineering is required or assumed: no questions are asked about this at any stage of our recruitment process and it forms no part of selection for pupillage.
Our Head of Chambers, Alexander Nissen KC, has a personal message for those thinking of applying:
“Thank you for considering making a pupillage application to Keating Chambers. As Head of Chambers, I want to personally assure you that, whatever your race, culture, gender (if any) and socio-economic background, your application here is genuinely welcome. We are looking for those people who will make the best construction barristers and we want to include you in our searches. We are impatient for change and, this year, I know we have made a huge effort to prepare a fair recruitment process, by making significant improvements to our selection criteria and process and by taking the best advice from specialists. Members of Chambers are already extensively involved in many mentoring and outreach schemes, and over the coming year, we plan a whole series of initiatives to welcome diverse candidates and to assure all potential candidates that Keating Chambers is a welcoming and inclusive environment. I wish you every success.”
As Alexander says, we carried out a comprehensive review of our Assessment Process and Selection Criteria ahead of the 2021 application process. We also reviewed the process again in 2022 and those adjustments included doubling the number of candidates who can reach a first round interview. We continue to review every year. We were very proud to be nominated for the Outstanding Set for Diversity & Inclusion award at the 2023 Chambers & Partners Awards.
A copy of our Pupillage Brochure can be found below and you may also find our videos and podcasts helpful when applying.
We wish you the very best of luck!
